Hold Me Tight

8

When I woke up in the morning, isang message agad ang natanggap mula sa isang tao na hindi 'ko naman talaga masyadong close, lalo na kay Toby.

Kellin Daveous Lucho
Reighn, hi. I heard the news about Toby, is he well?

A very unexpected message from him.

Hindi naman sa ayokong maassociate kami ni Toby sa kanya o sa kanilang magpinsan. It's just that I want to protect Toby from him and their fans. Ayokong mangyari kay Toby yung nangyari sa 'kin, especially because he's facing a battle right now.

: He's well, thank you for caring.

I turned off my phone after sending that message. Nag-ayos nalang ako agad para makaalis ako ng maaga. Sinabihan 'ko na rin si Ate Chia na hindi muna ako makakapunta sa hospital dahil ngayon gaganapin ang gallery.

"Reighn, take care," pahabol na sabi ni Mommy habang palabas ako ng pinto. "I will po, I love you!" sabi 'ko pabalik at nagflying kiss bago lumabas na ng bahay.

I looked at our doorway, where the 'just because' flowers are usually placed, but I saw nothing. Baka napagod na siya, kung ako rin naman ang nasa lugar niya, mapapagod din talaga ako.

Dumiretso muna ako sa studio pagkarating 'ko sa campus para ligpitin ang mga gamit 'ko. Mainit talaga ang tinginan sa akin ng mga tao, pero hindi 'ko na binigyan ng pansin. Naiintindihan 'ko naman dahil na rin sa nangyari kagabi. Ang hindi 'ko lang kayang mangyari ay ang makaharap si Sixto. Maraming mata ang nakatutok sa amin ngayon kaya isang lapit lang namin sa isa't-isa, maga-alburoto na naman sila.

"Reighn!" napalingon ako sa tumawag sa akin, it was Kellin. Nakasalubong 'ko siya habang palabas ako ng studio.

"Hi," iyon lang talaga ang nasabi 'ko dahil wala rin naman akong gustong sabihin sa kanya. Kung nakikita 'ko lang ang sarili 'ko ngayon, alam 'kong gusto niya nang makatakas sa sitwasyon na 'to.

"First and foremost, I would like to say sorry for the chaos that happened between you and Six. Alam 'ko na nagsorry na siya sayo, but I would also want to say sorry in behalf of Six and our band," dire-diretso niyang sabi.

Hindi 'ko naman maprocess agad ang mga sinabi niya kahit sobrang ikli lang no'n.

"I know I sound weird right now with this sudden apology, but I hope you can accept it. I'll pray for Toby to have a quick recovery, I am at least allowed to do that, right?" Hindi na ako nakapagsalita.

"I appreciate and accept your apology, Kellin. Hindi mo naman kailangang humingi ng tawad. It's not Sixto's, yours, or the band's fault. And thank you for praying for my friend; this means a lot," sabi 'ko sa kanya at nginitian siya. Hindi naman siguro ako nagmumukhang masungit, diba?

I tapped his shoulders before walking away, but as soon as I took a step, he stopped me.

"Reighn, last na talaga 'to, promise," sabi niya at nakaplease sign pa. Hinayaan 'ko nalang siyang gawin ang gusto niya.

"Can I see Toby? I just want to see if he's doing well. Although, alam 'kong hindi kami or tayo close, pero I just want to show that I care," he said, genuinely.

Wala namang problema sa akin, pero sa tingin 'ko kay Ate Chia meron.

"If you're asking me, you can. Pero hindi 'ko alam kung papayag ang kapatid niya, but I'll ask her if she'll allow you to visit Toby," sagot 'ko kaya napangiti siya. "Thank you, Reighn!" masayang sabi niya at niyakap ako. Nagpaalam siya na aalis na kaya nagpaalam na rin ako. We took different paths since hindi naman kami pareho ng pupuntahan.

When I arrived sa gallery, I saw a lot of people. May mga students, pero may ibang mga tao rin. Naglakad ako papalapit sa painting 'ko, and I saw a familiar figure standing in front of it. He stood there, tall and steady, his broad back facing me as if he belonged in front of my painting. The way his shoulders framed colors on the canvas made it impossible for me to look away, like he wasn't just standing there—he was a part of the art himself.

I walked a couple of steps and stood beside him. It was him, the person I least wanted near me at this moment of time.

"How did you know this is my work?" I spoke.

Napalingon siya sa 'kin and he was surprised. But again, he looked at my painting and fixed his posture.

"I saw your outlines when I drove you home a week ago," sagot niya.

Hindi na ako nagsalita ulit, tahimik 'ko lang na pinagmasdan ang gawa 'ko. Hanggang sa maraming tao ang lumapit roon kaya napatabi ako para padaanin sila. Nagulat din ako nang sumunod siya sa 'kin.

Magsasalita na sana ako nang maunahan niya ako. "I already told everyone to keep their eyes away from us." Natigilan ako dahil sa sinabi niya, ano na namang ginawa nito?

"You just added fuel to the fire," simple 'kong sabi. "Are you mad?" humina ang boses niya.

Hindi 'ko alam. Hindi 'ko alam kung galit ba ako sa kanya o hindi. Siguro galit lang ako sa mga fans niya, pero kung sa kanya individually, wala naman siguro. Hindi 'ko rin naman siya masisi kung lumalapit siya sa akin at gusto niyang makipagkaibigan. Wala namang problema sa 'kin yun.

"What made you think of that?" tanong 'ko sa kanya. My posture remained fixed, and my eyes stayed locked on my painting. I can feel his eyes on me, but I didn't move.

"Your face says it all," seryuso niyang sabi.

I know I was being rude to him. Ilang beses 'ko na ring sinabi sa sarili 'ko na hindi niya kasalanan, but I'm literally putting all the blame on him. Sinasabi 'kong hindi ako galit sa kanya, but I changed the way I talk to him.

"I'm not mad at you, Six," sabi 'ko. "Pero inaamin 'ko, when the issue spread inside the whole campus, I got mad," sunod 'kong sinabi.

He remained silent, maybe because he was trying to understand what I said. Alam 'ko namang matalino siya to understand all of those. I really want to ask him the reason why he wants to stay with me and defend me. When in fact, we haven't known each other for long. We're not even classmates, although we are neighbors.

"Six," I said his name. Napalingon siya sa 'kin, our eyes locked on each other. "Yes?"

"Bakit mo 'to ginagawa? Why are you doing all of these?" sunod-sunod 'kong tanong. I stared at him, he was taken aback. "Does there always have to be a reason?" simple niyang sagot. He's probably not ready to tell me the truth, and that's fine with me. Hindi naman big deal sa 'kin.

Nagsialisan na yung mga tao sa painting 'ko, Sixto also took his leave kaya nilapitan 'ko ulit. I saw a sticky note beside it—it was color red, the same color as the sticky note that came with the flowers the other day.

Kinuha 'ko yun at binasa.

Congratulations, RK. Please don't be mad at me, I'm sorry.

RK...